Poll: Will the Zaurus be relevant in 2 years?

[Anonymous]

I sometimes forget the excellent Yopy alternative because I\'m obsessed with getting the 640x480 at 4\" diag in the SL-6000.  Also, my former officemate had an ancient Sharp laptop whose display never grew old, while all the other laptops in the office dimmed with age.  His (Japan-purchased) Sharp had an ancient processor, but it was a pleasure to look at---I even used it in a video promoting my software, rather than using a newer notebook, just because the Sharp display was so, well, sharp.

[Ethereal]

The \"rub\" is that having a broader user base--which Sharp could have achieved by better promoting its Zaurii--would have meant more commercial (\"plug-and-play\") peripherals, software, cases, and all the other little extras that come to market when their makers think there are enough potential buyers to justify developing them.  Sharp\'s marketing failures have not only cost the company revenue--they have also cost the Zaurus and those of us who use it a \"place at the table\" in the handleld accessory aftermarket.

I\'m curious (and I know it\'s probably been discussed elsewhere but I wasn\'t paying attention).  What software is \"missing\" from the Zaurus?  I really like the suite that Sharp supports and, with Jeode, I can cobble up little apps of my own in Java and be happy as a clam(shell).

For me, the biggest (really, only) deficiency is a high-quality drug reference.  TxDrug was a respectable effort, but as far as I can tell, it\'s no longer maintained, and it\'s not really adequate for clinical use.  I\'ve read Darien Kruss\' page about successfully running ePocrates under QPose, but my experience was less fruitful.

I contacted ePocrates about the possibility of supporting the Z, and their response was along the lines of \"Zaur--what?  Yeah, well, get back to us when you can name three other physicians who use that, uhh, whatever-it-is.\"  It\'s frustrating that a device which could have enjoyed far greater mainstream market share (with a little decent marketing) instead languishes in almost underground status--and us with it!

[padishah_emperor]

I\'m happy with the Z the way it is, it\'s a small community of enthusiasts, it reminds me of the british home computer revolution in the 80\'s, with little niche groups viciously defending their ZX Spectrums, Acorn Electrons and VIC-20\'s.  I quite like that, is it elitist? I don\'t really care.

If it was \'common\' like palm and pocketpc/wince or whatever they call it this week, it would loose it\'s charm and uniqueness. Since I can\'t stand this bluetooth/wiffy wifi trend I am a happy customer and can add those options if and when I decide.  A mini UNIX workstation in my pocket? wow!  Good enough for me.

Then again I used the HP 200LX for about 7 years and didn\'t give a flying hoot about the fact it was no longer made or supported.

These issues are important I suppose for palm etc. users or the kind of (odd) people that buy a PDA every week just because it\'s cool or like to brag about a their growing heap of PDAs, thats my view anyway, dont flame me. I buy for the long haul, I got my 5500 cheap second hand off ebay after ditching a Sony Clie (which was obsolete before I got it out of the box), I am now investing in an 860 to save getting a Linux laptop and PDA.

As long as Sharp make these as a service(?) to the Linux community I am happy with the current situation.  If they stop making it, well I\'ve got mine, so I\'m alright jack.

Will it be relevant in 2 years? Moreover, does it really matter? As long as WE, the people who love them still get to play with them?

[mussi]

Basically, software-wise, there are few things missing IMO. Maybe syncing notes from KOrganizer wouldn\'t really hurt, and being able to use Kitchensync to install software wouldn\'t hurt really bad neither. We already have an astronomy program, and I can even look up train time tables on my Z if I want.

My personal wish list:

- release (yes, release) the C860 with Opie factory-installed.
- Make a successor to the 860 with internal WiFi and a 4 GB hard disk for the hardcore folks. This implies a larger battery as well.
- give it bluetooth so if I want to have a real keyboard and mouse nearby, I can use them with the Z

Basically, there are four form factors a PDA should have models for:

- cell phone a la Handspring Treo 600
- Zaurus SL5500/5600/6000
- C860
- mini-laptop akin to the Toshiba Libretto, but with no real PC hardware inside (the Intel PXA series is probably more power efficient). Get it a 2.5\" harddisk. This piece should have Wifi, Bluetooth and a PCMCIA slot so we can put in UMTS or GSM cards data cards.  And ethernet, as well as USB ports and maybe 1394.

All the afore-mentioned machines need at least a CF and a SD slot as well, I\'m not so hot on SDIO though as I currently don\'t see a violent need for it, but this could change if it doesn\'t add to the cost in a significant way. The last machine will compete with real laptops though.

[ScottYelich]

pdaxrom now has javarm, kaffe, classpath, etc.

http://zaurus.spy.org/feeds/davonz

Scott